Con Coughlin is the Telegraph's Defence Editor and a world-renowned expert on global security and terrorism issues. He is the author of several critically acclaimed books. His new book, Churchill's First War: Young Winston and the fight against the Taliban, is published by Macmillan in London and Thomas Dunne Books in New York. He appears regularly on radio and television in Britain and America.

My Coalition verdict: David Cameron still has lots to learn about the big, bad world

Verdict 5/10: Like every new Downing Street incumbent, David Cameron has experienced a sharp learning curve during the past year as he has struggled to come to terms with the challenges posed by global affairs. And, if his performance with regard to Libya and Afghanistan are anything to go by, he still has much to learn. On the plus side he is to be congratulated for keeping the Lib Dems well away from anything to do with foreign affairs. All the key ministries – the Foreign Office, MOD, DFID etc – are run by senior Tories of high calibre, which is just as well. If the Lib Dems were allowed anywhere near this crucial area of policy, our global stature would be reduced to that of Scandinavia. That said, Mr Cameron remains less than convincing when it comes to handling global security issues. Last year his National Security Council concluded that in future Britain would do everything in its power to avoid foreign military entanglements. But within the space of just a few months our Prime Minister had committed us to an open-ended war in Libya. Meanwhile, in Afghanistan, the one war that really matters, he appears desperate to withdraw our troops at the earliest opportunity. Osama bin Laden may be dead, but the terror threat lives on, and it would be an extremely foolhardy PM indeed that pulled out of Afghanistan before the potent terror threat in this benighted region had been fully and properly eradicated.

Biggest winner: Dr Liam Fox. Even more unpopular in Downing Street than Vince Cable for his tenacious defence of the military during the spending review.

Biggest loser: Baroness Neville-Jones. Thought she would be Cameron's security czar but lost out to William Hague, who wrestled control of the National Security Council from her grip.